Belarus Can Learn Democracy from Iran

It may sound surprising but the Iranian political system is more democratic and pluralistic than its Belarusian counterpart.

To build a democratic state Belarus needs a complete overhaul, while Iran needs just light repairs. Anti-Western rhetoric united these regimes but...

It may sound surprising but the Iranian political system is more democratic and pluralistic than its Belarusian counterpart.

To build a democratic state Belarus needs a complete overhaul, while Iran needs just light repairs. Anti-Western rhetoric united these regimes but when it comes to political systems there are more differences than similarities.

Belarus' political system is centred around one personality. The foundation of Iranian politics is a number of power centres openly competing against each other. Iran has a vibrant media market where multiple daily newspapers represent not only views of various fractions within the ruling elite but also views of the opposition. Finally, while Belarus has not had real elections since 1995, the outcome of Iranian elections is always uncertain and does depend on the voters' choice.

Centre of Power: One in Belarus and Multiple in Iran

Belarusian politics may be reduced to a simple personality paradigm. Since the late 1990s, Belarus' first and only President Alexandr Lukashenka has taken complete control over executive, legislative and judiciary branches of government in Belarus. He controls a largely discontented population and has managed to marginalise the opposition.

The opposition after years of persecution has no real place within this mechanism of control. All important decisions are made in one centre – the Presidential Administration. Other state bodies only implement its decisions, The Belarusian parliament is a rubber stamp institution which approves everything sent to it from the Presidential Administration.

The Belarusian regime has already eradicated any real political competition in the country. For years, it has kept the opposition out of the mainstream media, does not allow it to meet with people and prevents it from entering even the powerless local councils. Thus, the opposition has no experience with political activity, as it has to do more with dissident and underground work. Their absence of real qualifications became manifest in last presidential elections with numerous oppositional candidates campaigning against the single regime candidate, or in their different stances towards participation in these parliamentary elections.

The Belarusian state is ruled and manipulated by a ruler which shows no tolerance for serious opponents. Survival of the opposition is conditional on its weakness, as any serious rival instantly faces severe repressions. Seeing the rise of Social Democrat leader Mikola Statkievich or businessman Mikalay Autukhovich, the regime imprisoned them for years using obedient Belarusian courts. The rule of law and separation of powers are severely undermined in Belarus.

Moreover, there are no established mechanisms for elites' rotation in power as well as the guarantees for elites losing power. No one can return to power after being thrown out of the government. Such persons either become marginalised in the opposition inside the country (like former National Bank chief Bahdankievich) or go to work abroad (as former foreign ministers Latypau and Krauchanka).

There is not even a slightly comparable figure to Lukashenka and no single centre of power in IranRead more

Iran is very different. There is not even a slightly comparable figure to Lukashenka and no single centre of power. Among most important centres of power are the presidential office of the supreme leader, parliament, judiciary etc. The Shah may have established a regime a la Lukashenka but it was been crushed by the 1979 revolution. Iran's sixth president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad tried to introduce his own dictatorship in mid-2000s yet despite all the violence and fraud succeeded only in uniting all political factions against himself.

Numerous factions representing different forces control different branches of the Iranian government from the time of the revolution. The elites who lead occasionally struggle, even ferociously at times, among themselves yet usually stop short of eliminating their opponents. Thus, the leader of the radical faction and former Prime Minister in 1980s Mir Hussein Musavi lost his battle in early 1990s but made a comeback in late 2000s.

Political Violence

Violence does take place in Iranian politics and some people get killed. Yet the struggle among factions cause these assassinations much more frequently than any consolidated will of the Iranian government (like in the case of so called “chain murders” when a conservative faction used rogue elements of Information Ministry to kill a number of intellectuals and activists).

In addition, the Islamic Republic – like many states throughout the world – resorts to killing opponents which deny its right to exist and lead armed struggle against it (like Mojahedin-e Khalq or separatists and Sunni fundamentalist guerillas). However, the scale of Iranian state-sponsored targeted killings cannot be compared to Soviet terror.

Belarus has seen three cases of disappearances related to politics in 1999-2000, among them of former internal minister Zakharanka and the leader of dissolved parliament Hanchar. The third disappearance, of the TV cameraman Zavadski, may have been a private feud. Yet the Belarusian state does not face terrorist activities and armed radical opposition. Actually, the regime does not need such intensive intimidating methods as cruel torture or killing.

The Iranian government and factions use physical force when it is too late to sort out the situations with milder means. Pro-government forces in Iran had to fire into crowd in 2009 while Belarusian security services dispelled even completely harmless silent protests in 2011. The Belarusian state has held a firm grip over every part of the nation and in this way it could sideline all potential pretenders. For example, none of the politicians from 1990s has any political following now and the rating of not one of the oppositional politicians can be compared to Lukashenka's, even today.

Elections: Results in Iran Are Difficult to Predict

Since 1979, Iran held all its elections in due time and they – with exception of radical opposition which explicitly or implicitly denies the right of current Iranian state to exist – displayed real political competition. There are reasonable proofs of falsification only in the last presidential elections. The votes were generally counted and even anti-establishment candidates managed to win. For example, Ahmadinejad won his first election in 2005, Khatami won his presidency twice though the Supreme leader preferred another candidate.

Independent Belarus has held only two real elections, a presidential in 1994 and a parliamentary in 1995Read more

Independent Belarus has held only two real elections, a presidential in 1994 and a parliamentary in 1995. The winners of these elections – Alexandr Lukashenka and the first not-Soviet parliament – almost immediately started fighting with each other and it ended in 1996 with a manipulated referendum and constitutional coup-d'etat. The nation has no experience of electoral politics at all, the politicians know only the political struggle for life or death. The parliament has had no role in politics since 1996. The election fraud became so common that no one wonders when it is revealed.

Media Freedom: Two Different Worlds

Despite many media being shut down in Iran, the country has vibrant media landscape with no monopoly of any faction on media. Both different factions of ruling elites and different clusters of opposition have each either their own media or access to such media. Though such dailies as Iran, Keyhan, Jam-e-Jam or Ettelaat all can be designated as having some affiliation with the government and its different branches yet they each represent very different views.

In Belarus the state-owned media is so similar that in May information minister Aleh Pralyaskouski announced merger of five national newspapers into one. “There is little difference in their thematic contents and forms of presentation”, he explained. The Belarusian opposition can voice their opinions in one relatively important daily and three weekly publications, as well as on its own websites.

The situation with TV and radio in Iran also demonstrates more freedom than in BelarusRead more

The situation with TV and radio in Iran also demonstrates more freedom than in Belarus as they – although not in fair proportions – it does give some space to different political factions. Thus during the 2009 presidential election campaign there was a series of one-on-one open discussions between all candidates, including the incumbent – something that is simply a fantasy in Belarus. The Iranians also watch satellite TV, including many Western-based channels with their appropriate democracy and human rights inputs such as Persian BBC.

There is no place for anyone except for Lukashenka and his entourage on the TV and radio. The country is much more closed due to the Iron Curtain in Soviet times and remains under Russian cultural and informational clout. If Belarusians watch satellite TV, then it is often Russian channels with Russian news and ideas of democracy.

Future Prospects: Unlike Iran Belarus Needs a Completely New System

Iran only needs to reform some unelected branches of government – such as the office of the Supreme Leader by giving clergy the role which has been provided for it in the 1906 Constitution. All other branches function decently enough for a developing country and and have kind of separation of powers.

The Iranian government may continue working as usual after democratic reforms, yet with less censorship and a new role for the clergy. The mechanisms of Iranian political system have proven to be very robust, as the nation continued its development after the war and revolution, which was followed by rather limited political violence.

Belarus needs a completely new political system for democratic transformation. The current regime concentrates all power in the president's hands in the absence of any checks and balances. Most likely the regime insiders will replace Lukashenka at some point, as has happened with similar regimes in the past. They will have little idea about democratic development, and the nation will need many years to establish accountable and efficient government.

Belarusians in Poland: Living Together but Separately

Bilingual road sign (bialorus.pl)

On 12 August Polish hooligans attacked Belarusian journalists and activists in Warsaw. Although such incidents are rare, old stereotypes and prejudices often make life for Belarusians in Poland difficult. Such stereotypes also provoke anti-Belarusian acts of vandalism. Although Poland guarantees the Belarusian minority certain rights, in reality they face various obstacles to retain their identity.

Problems with the Belarusian minority begin with simply determining their numbers. Official statistics estimates the minority at 47,000 people, but Belarusian activists think that the real number is a few times higher. The national census taken in 2011 arouses controversy over the real number of the Belarusian minority. In fact, it does not provide reliable data.

According to Belarusian activists the real number of the Belarusians may even be as high as 200,000–250,000 people. Nevertheless, in comparison to the previous census results, the recent statistics reveal some decrease in the number of people who declare their identity as Belarusian — in 2002 there were 48,700 such people.

A few factors are responsible for such discrepancies. Some Belarusians do not feel comfortable speaking openly about their national identity. On the other hand, the incidents that took part in the context of the last national census proved ignorance and insensitivity to the issue. Some of the census takers ignored the affirmations regarding the declarations of Belarusian nationality by the people in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. In other cases they considered Polish citizenship to automatically mean being a Polish national and ignored declarations of Belarusian identity.

Going to the Elections

Members of the Belarusian minority do not have guaranteed representation in the Polish parliament, unlike the German minority. Belarusians have not yet constituted a political party which could represent exclusively its interests. But they have established electoral committees on a temporary basis in the past. In most cases Belarusian activists run on the electoral lists of other political parties, mainly the leftist parties. Today Eugeniusz Czykwin is the only representative of that minority in the lower chamber of the Polish parliament.

The situation seems different at the level of municipalities, where in minority representatives participate actively. In some municipalities in north-eastern Poland the Belarusian population constitutes a majority. In Czyże and Dubicze Cerkiewne over 80 per cent of the population are Belarusian, in Hajnowka, Orla over 60 per cent. These numbers make Belarusian representatives in the local self-governance structures substantial.

Teach Me in Belarusian!

Because of the inevitable assimilation process, Belarusian language teaching remains a priority for local activists. According to statistics, around 3,500 students learn Belarusian in 44 institutions within the state educational system in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It includes 2-3 hours of class, available from kindergarten through primary schools up to secondary school.

Belarusian activists insist that the number of classes is insufficient. Moreover, the very education of language should shift more into the realms of teaching Belarusian history and culture. It could more effectively strengthen Belarusian identity among people. Another issue is to improve the attitude of Poles to the Belarusian minority. Thus, early education aimed at schoolchildren's education on national identity and culture might be one solution.

A number of organisations in Poland work to strengthen Belarusian national identity through popularising the Belarusian language and culture. The Kupalle festival of Belarusian culture, the Basovishcha Music Festival of Young Belarus and numerous other events attract not only local Belarusians but also Poles and guests from Belarus.

Many of these initiatives lack adequate financial support. The Basovishcha is festival widely known in Belarus and attended by the best Belarusian rock bands. However, it struggled to find enough money this year and many thought it would not happen. Whereas it is popular for some Polish politicians to praise values of the multinational environment, funding of such initiatives remains rather modest and insufficient.

Protecting Belarusian Identity

Negative stereotypes still determine the way many Poles perceive the Belarusian minority. Most of the prejudices are tied to perceptions regarding religion. Since a majority of Belarusians belong to the Orthodox Church, some of their Polish fellow citizens often perceive them as "strangers".

It is surprising because Belarusians are a traditional and historical minority in the eastern part of Poland. Nevertheless, in most cases, Polish people do not really know about Belarusians and it is the mass media which provides Poles with such an image of them. Since it can influence mutual Belarusian-Polish perceptions, it would seem particularly helpful to overcome such negative stereotypes.

In an effort to meet the minority expectations, Polish legislation from 2005 gave the right to use Belarusian language as an additional language in the places where Belarusian minority constitutes at least 20% of whole population. Since 2007 the local authorities have introduced it in a few communities, for example in the Hajnowka and Orla municipalities.

Moreover, the Belarusian minority has a right to secure bilingual place names where there is a substantial number of Belarusians. In 2011, in the region of Orla the local authorities erected the first such signs. However, they did not withstand the test of time and in May 2012, hooligans destroyed them.

Hooligan acts can take place at any time. The vast majority of xenophobic crime is committed by people who do not even know Belarusians, a target of their aggression. Proper education on national and cultural diversity will help them understand that being a Polish national does not necessarily mean being a Pole and such unpleasant incidents should become a thing of the past.

Paula Borowska is currently completing a PhD on religion and social capital at University College London. She holds a Master of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Research and Studies on Eastern Europe from the University of Bologna.